On Friday, Real Salt Lake defender Nedum Onuoha announced on his podcast "Kickback with Nedum Onuoha" that Sunday would be his last game as a professional.
On the episode, he offered a heartfelt message to teammates, coaches and staff that have played a role along his journey, including a special message about his late mother, Dr. Anthonia Onuoha.
“Yes, I am retiring. And I feel very lucky to step away with a nod of approval from most of those that I’ve played with and worked with. And also – here’s the bigger one – I’m still an early pick in the training ground five-a-sides.
To be serious for a moment, let me open up for once.
For those that don’t know me, I was a mother’s boy. She was everything to me and as well as that, my career meant everything to her. The support she showed me was unmatched. So for me, my life and career changed forever when she died from cancer in 2012. My career never felt the same from that point and I just didn’t enjoy it as much as I did before because she wasn’t there with me. So it breaks my heart that she isn’t here to celebrate the end of my journey, but I take strength in knowing she was there at the start. But in the void left by her passing, I found some of my closest friends and my incredible family. So thank you for always being there for me when I needed you the most.
I think the career I had wasn’t quite as successful as it could have been, but it is still one that I’m immensely proud of. So thank you again to all of the good people that I’ve met during the journey – from teammates to coaches to fans to the people washing the dishes in the cafeteria. You’re all invaluable to this beautiful game and I wouldn’t have been able to make it this far without you.”
To hear the full episode, listen here:
